


Tirana

by Weaveroftalltales



Category: Army Of Two (Video Game)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-17 10:15:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29098656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Weaveroftalltales/pseuds/Weaveroftalltales
Summary: A political opponent needs Salem and Rios' help. And SSC has left them out to dry.
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hope this works correctly. This is my first work on here. If I mess up any historical details, please let me know. It means a lot. Otherwise, look up Enver Hoxha. He was an interesting dictator. (And King Zog, look him up.) Feedback is always appreciated. Especially regarding the feasibility of this plot. Thanks!

Chapter 1 

**Miami, 2005**

Salem looked at Rios. There it was. Either a shit-eating grin, a face of sheer anger, or one that would indicate he was severely drunk. Not that that was uncharacteristic of the man. This time, Salem had opted for the shit-eating grin that so suited him.

Rios's brows lowered as he looked over at the younger man. "What's going on, Salem?" Salem didn't validate it with words. He simply kicked his feet back and pointed. A cream-colored file folder.

"I wanna know what's in the folder. You sulk when we get bad jobs," Salem said.

"I do not sulk."

"Ya pout, Rios. You totally do," Salem said as he pointed at the man. "So what's in it?" Rios laid it out on the coffee table. Salem opened it and a frown came across his face. 

"Two beers says you can't read the name of that state agency," Rios said. He pointed to the Albanian word Sigurimi. 

"Tyse, you know I can't speak Italian." 

"Not Italian. Read it," 

"Sih-gur-imi?"

"Yup..." Rios sighed.

And now, they were going for beers. Rios took his company car and they picked up Alice, the SSC mission coordinator. Naturally, she would do better explaining the mission to Salem. Not that he was going to explain to Salem why that was. He just... didn't listen to Rios worth a damn. But, Rios reasoned, he would definitely listen to Murray. Especially if something was her idea. 

They looked around the room. A pool table, smoke filling the area. The bartender looked tired and as though he had aged a thousand years in a week. He moved slowly and limped as he went along the bar. Each step elicited a new grimace. But upset was the last thing he appeared to be. 

"Glarus. Three," Tyson ordered. 

The bartender nodded and smiled. After a quick wink to whoever's lady friend had graced his sight, he began to fulfill the order. Salem leaned forward a bit to readjust his posture. Rios watched as his shirt moved up slightly. There it was, the holster. And, subsequently, an explanation for his bulge. In what seemed like record time, the three had their beers. Murray was the one to slap a generous tip down onto the counter. The man smiled. 

"So, I trust you understand why we brought you here?" Rios asked Alice. She nodded. 

"You wanna go over the job. What's up, what can I do?" 

"Explain it to us. As usual, SSC did a shit job there," Salem griped as his temper increased a bit. Rios remained astute as to the man's condition.

Rios sighed. Maybe Salem didn't need to approach every situation with such blunt language. 

"Okay. You're right. Anyways, you're going to Albania. Tirana specifically," Alice explained, "And you're meeting your contact at this resort." She underlined the name. 

"What does he have us doing? Political, I could see assassination mixed in... What does he want?" Rios asked. 

"Right. So, here's a history lesson. A bit after the fall of World War Two and into the mid-1980s, Albania was under communist rule." 

"And what's that got to do with our guy?" Salem asked impatiently, wishing Murray would get to the point. She flashed him a quick smile and he shut up immediately. 

"The Sigurimi, the old secret police, have files on loads of people who were suspected dissidents to the regime. The dissenters got ratted on, and went into what can only be described as mini gulags, fields, etc." Murray said. 

"And?" Salem asked. 

"And our guy has files on him. The secret police were involved with him. Problem is, the government won't release the files. And he's running for office," she said. 

"So... we need those files why? What did he do?" Rios asked. 

"He won't tell SSC. Those files would do damage if the press leaked them," Alice explained. 

Salem thought he could see where this was going. Their man did something stupid and now it was their asses. When did that ever change? 

"So we need to take them. They're in a warehouse on the outskirts of Tirana," Alice said. 

"And how much are we getting paid?" Rios asked. 

"500k for every document with his name on it. His men get to watch us work. We tell anyone anything..." 

"Wait. We have a choice. What if we turn him down?" Salem asked. 

"We can't. I signed us up. And one other thing..." Alice said with a pause "This is not some third world shithole like we're used to. This is a democratic country with rules and laws." 

"So? How'd you just sign us up!?" Salem asked, irate. 

"You could make a killing. And I'm your boss, so..." Alice trailed off "Yeah. If you get caught, we're going away for a long time. You'll get tried." 

"And SSC just lets that happen? They can't defend us?" Rios asked.

"Afraid not. However, as always, screw up and SSC, and I don't know you. We never had this conversation," Alice said, turning back.

"Thanks for the drink, boys," Alice said. She didn't make eye contact with Salem, because nothing was going to stop his temper. Rios had paid earlier. She left them to their own devices. Salem was on the verge of exploding, so he took the younger man out back, buying him another beer as per their bet. 

"What the FUCK!?" Salem shouted, having had a beer and a sudden urge to punch anything that should be in his path. He paced back and forth frantically, losing any semblance of professionalism. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Salem is more vocal about his doubts. Alice attempts to justify herself to Salem as Rios takes note of things to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The main meat here is that Alice plays Salem. Like, a lot. I dunno, she just never seemed like the best person. She always seemed selfish to me. But that's just me. If you disagree, feel free to comment so. Otherwise, we'll see how this plays out.

Salem paced as Rios watched quietly. It was more effective to let the younger man tire himself out. 

"I don't like it either. But we don't have any other choice, Salem. And this is a really dark lot." 

"So we just do this? Let 'em walk all over us?" 

"Maybe not..." Rios trailed. Salem calmed down slightly. Rios was almost ready to do what the younger man was doing now. Murray didn't have the authority to just throw them into anything. Not that that seemed to matter to her. Salem then turned and looked at Rios, turning his hand. This meant Rios should continue. "But we are taking it." 

"What!?" Salem shouted, lulled back into his rage. 

"You need cash. Just trust me." 

Salem sighed. He could usually trust Rios. At least, that was his hope. This particular incident didn't seem to be illustrating that. 

"Now... We'll see her tomorrow morning. We'll get on the plane, go through the motions." 

"And then?" Salem asked, his excitement building as he anticipated the "snap". 

"Then, we get a good night's sleep. And then we..." Rios droned on for several minutes in the poorly lit area. 

"You'd think I'd been mugged by now." 

"I'm not done yet, Elliot!" Rios barked. 

"Hey! I've got a big, fat wallet!" Salem shouted into the night. 

"Salem," Rios growled. 

"It's true, fatty. I'll catch ya tomorrow," Salem said, walking away. He sobered up. And then sighed that there wasn't a single vagrant to jump him around Rios. 

Salem walked the half-hour back to his apartment. He decided it was best to go alone. Rios had done quite enough. How could Alice do this to them? Was it just practice to share as little information as possible? They were a team. And teams did NOT just withhold information. He walked into his apartment, pissed as ever. 

He stole a glance in the mirror. That was good enough. He went to the fridge, grabbed a beer, and toasted with some imaginary person. Tomorrow was going to be a long day, he realized. So, he sent himself directly to bed and after completing the nightly routine. 

The next morning, at 5, Salem was up. He had showered the night before, only applying deodorant, brushing his teeth, and making sure he had the gear he'd need. He wondered about Salem as he noticed unanswered messages on his phone. One from Rios, one from Alice. He played Rios's first. It was a brief, but a well-meaning apology. Salem didn't particularly care, but it was a personal victory for the big man to admit a mistake. 

And then he heard a knock on his apartment door. He let fly a brief curse. Then he opened the door. 

"Hi, Salem. Look, we need to talk about yesterday..." Murray trailed off. She let herself in. 

"No shit, Alice. Wanna come in while you're at it?" 

"Firstly, I wanna apologize. I shouldn't have put you and Rios on the spot. I just... I could get promoted. This job's got cash written all over it, I just thought you'd be interested." 

Salem went to his dartboard and began his morning beer. Alice now realized that, given this, she'd be competing for his attention. She smirked slightly, that was never difficult. 

"So while thinking all about Alice in Wonderland, Murray decided I needed to hear her out?" Salem asked, his temper rising slightly. These were the moments Alice wished Rios was around to control him. 

"You're so lucky we haven't dropped you yet," Alice said, immediately referencing SSC. Salem rolled his eyes and went back to his task, only acknowledging her if she spoke. 

"Gimme one good reason I don't throw you out right now." 

"Because I'm really, truly sorry. It was a stupid thing to do. I know it makes things harder when I don't talk to you and Rios and you put your lives on the line. I just figured this wasn't a big job." 

"We could lose our lives. Every job is big. Now, why are playing politics and war?" Salem asked. 

"I didn't wanna say this, but our man has SSC in a bind. If we didn't send you two, he'd expose our operations and internal affairs." 

"How fucking hard was that to say, Murray!?" Salem said, exploding after receiving three half-assed explanations. "FUCK!" 

Rios was on his way to picking up his partner. Alice had tried to reach him several times, the last message being somewhat lengthy and without explaining anything of substance. Immediately, he remembered Salem's reaction last night. And that Alice really didn't have a calming effect on people she'd wronged. Her all-business, company first approach was understandable. But for someone like Salem, who really didn't care and wanted facts? It made things more difficult. Being cryptic and making promises only worked for so long. 

As he showed up at the apartment complex, Rios had a sinking feeling. He saw the other car and sighed before making his way in. He then felt his blood boil a little. He couldn't describe it, but if Salem was angry, he felt like he almost always knew. Voodoo, telepathy, whatever. Maybe just knowing someone like a brother? Rios genuinely thought he could tell. And what he could tell was that he had very little, if any time, to calm things down. 

He knocked on the apartment door, which was unlocked. Salem opened it and waved at Rios, his cue to come in. Alice hadn't noticed. 

Alice smirked. Salem was no longer angry and Rios noted that. Hearing her comment and seeing her put her hand on Salem, he didn't like what he saw. Salem, despite being an untouchable, temper-filled kid at his best and a crazed maniac at his worst, had fallen for something.

"Are you ready to go, Elliot?" Rios asked in his usual baritone voice. 

Salem nodded. He and Rios left out of the apartment and into the parking lot. With Rios driving, Salem was comfortable. Alice left on her own, having convinced the more child than man, Elliot Salem, to forgive her. 

They soon arrived at Miami International Airport. Salem whined about the heat, despite being from Louisiana. Rios frowned before the two walked across the massive parking lot to go inside the massive building. On the tarmac, planes landed and took off. People from all around the world had come to see what Miami had to offer. 

Security was a sinch. With their firearms all licensed and baggage accounted for, they needed to board the plane. In a matter of minutes, they found themselves onboard the Boeing. 

"You two Salem and Rios?" a man and a suit asked, smiling at them. 

The men nodded. 

"Excellent. I trust you have the flight schedule? The name's Burton, SSC travel coordinator," the man said jovially shaking their hands. "You two need no introduction." 

"So, we first touch down in Madrid. Then to Milan. After that, we land in Tirana. Your mission," the man said excitedly. He grinned, looking as though he was about to burst. 

"You okay?" Salem asked. 

"Yes, Mr. Salem. This is just a very big job for the company." 

The men nodded their understanding.

"We have two flight attendants on board, so feel free to make yourselves at home. It's a long flight." 

Salem looked at Rios. He could do almost anything with a dedicated plan, face any situation, and come out on top. But for flying? He had no plan. He had a fear of flights, despite going on one almost every other week. 

"How we doin', Tyse?" Salem asked. 

Rios barely made eye contact as the plane took off. He stuck as tightly to the seat as he could. 

"Shut up, Salem. It's bad enough as it is," Rios said.

"Chew some gum. Helps with the ears popping." 

"Do you have some?" 

"Do I? Let's see..." Salem said, "I've got mints and I've got Cheetos. Ya want one?" 

Rios nodded heartily. If chewing Cheetos was what he had to do, he would do it. 

Salem tossed him a bag. Rios caught it, opened it, and began eating. Rios finished the Cheetos in a minute. 

"You have anything else?" 

"Pop rocks?" Salem offered, shrugging. Rios' face, meanwhile, was covered in orange powder. 

"Sure. Better than listening to you," Rios complained. His ears were almost ready to pop. He took the pop rocks and sent them into his gaping maw. 

"Salem, what are these!? Have you had them?" Rios asked as he felt the sensation in his mouth. It burned, somewhat. 

"Now I know. And I'm not having them," he said, a shit-eating grin crossing his face. Rios was not smiling. 

"You pull that shit again and I'm gonna strangle you, Salem," Rios threatened. 

"Not while the seat belt sign is on." 

Rios sat there as the sensation continued. He tried to avoid Salem's look, unable to do so as the man kicked back. 

"The seat belt sign is off. Feel free to move around the cabin." 

Salem looked at Rios. A look of worry came over him as the big man walked over. "Come here, Elliot." 

Salem obeyed and went to sit by Rios. But he wasn't going to give up that easily. 

"Ya know, we're 30,000 feet in the air. Wonder what falling feels like. Maybe a really fast, kick-ass roller coaster." 

That snapped Rios out of his new daze. He turned to Salem. "Don't say that, Elliot." 

"We hit the water, cameras everywhere, maybe we get to get on a floatie. Remember, like in Indiana Jones?" 

"Salem..." Rios said in a low growl. 

"Maybe there'll be some mountain we can run into. Too bad we don't have any parachutes!" Salem shouted. 

Rios grabbed a nearby plastic bag. He threw up, Salem having exacerbated his worst fears. 

"Alright, Elliot. We're gonna have some quiet time," Rios said, having only thrown up briefly. He picked him up simply by the shirt collar. 

"Oh, remember "Airplane?" Seemed like you had the fish," Salem said, laughing as he remembered the dinner scene. "Hey! Put me down, Tyse!" 

"No," he said simply. He threw Salem into the bathroom and put overhead luggage in front to prevent the younger man from getting out. 

"Tyse!? What the hell!? I was just jokin' around!" Salem complained. 

"Joke around in there. I have a flight to sit through. Happy trails, Elliot! You've always had a drinking problem," Rios laughed boisterously as Salem spent the next hour letting lose every expletive known to man.

Rios smiled at his cleverness of also finding an "Airplane" reference to use on Elliot. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully, the Alice thing serves as a useful plot element. I think it was implied in the comics that she and Salem dated? I dunno, that'll play a role. Stay tuned!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rios and Salem arrive in Albania. Salem remains apprehensive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope anyone reading this had a good week. At the time of writing, Valentine's Day isn't that far away.

Chapter 3

As the plane got ready to land, Rios smiled to himself. Salem had been pleasantly quiet. So the big man had gotten a LOT of rest. 

For his part, Salem was almost eerily quiet. Being in an airplane bathroom all alone does that, Salem supposed. Rios didn't make a single effort to pay Salem any mind. A costly mistake, as the man freed himself. Luggage went flying! 

"Hey Tyse, watcha reading?" 

"Oh nothing much, Elliot. Elliot?" 

"Yeah?" 

"You got out. Damn it!" Rios complained. 

"I couldn't leave my special big guy all alone," Salem said in a patronizing tone. Rios frowned. "Where are we?" 

"We just landed in Madrid. Next is Milan in about fifteen hours to takeoff." It was early afternoon. 

Salem nodded. That seemed relatively easy. _Now, what do we do with 15 hours?_ So, much to his chagrin, he asked Rios. 

"We see what Spain has to offer. Then we go to the airport," Rios said. 

"Whaddya mean?" 

"We oughta get lunch, do a tapas crawl." 

"What?" 

"It's a fancy way of saying let's go eat all the finger food we can get." 

Salem liked the plan. It seemed like he could hold a lot of finger foods, as he learned from a mission-gone-wrong in Bilbao. While getting shot at. 

"Aren't these the guys who have wine like all the time?" Salem asked. 

"A lot, certainly. Why do you think I picked Madrid, Elliot? This is the only place you can drink alcohol at lunch and it's not weird," Rios said, as though alcohol was all Madrid had going for it. 

"And not the nightlife?" Salem asked. "If we're going to Milan, I wanna be bombed outta my mind." 

"Why, Salem? It's Italy." 

"I dunno." 

Rios did understand, though. Back in Miami, they'd rarely gotten to go out on the town. SSC usually had something planned. Rios thought about it. _So why not get drunk and lost in a place we've never been?_

And that was how they'd gone from talking on the plane to getting hammered on someone's abandoned balcony overlooking Madrid's picturesque downtown at 11 at night. And the owner never came home, Rios sobering up. 

"Salem, let's get to the airport. We'll have to make up for our plan in Tirana," Rios said. Salem sighed as he thought about the night, but followed the man. 

In their condition, Rios decided they'd be driven to the airport. After finding a car in the international city, they were off to Madrid-Barajas Adolfo Suárez Airport. Within half an hour, they were moving through the airport. In an hour, they were on the plane waiting for takeoff. 

Below them lay the airport. It was beautiful, with a strange curving roof and a terminal area under visible construction. Planes taking off and leaving. This airport, unbeknownst to the two men, handled millions of passengers annually. And with the completion of the new terminal area, that would climb to a capability of 70 million passengers annually. (In 2019, it was the 22nd busiest airport with over 60 million passengers.) Planes were loaded, landing, or taking off. Salem watched in awe. This was one of the largest airports he'd ever seen. It sprawled in every direction. 

"Rios, look. How big is this place?" 

"This is probably a few miles, at least." (Nowadays, it's about 11 miles in size. Europe's second-largest airport.) 

"Next we go to Malpensa in Milan. Not nearly as big as this," Rios pointed out to Salem. 

It was another massive airport, nonetheless. (28 million passengers annually in 2019 is still respectable.) And Salem thought about the security. If it was anything like Madrid, he'd want to spend less time doing so. 

They landed about three hours later. The two men got off the plane, grabbed an airport breakfast, and went to the queue for their next flight. Despite it being six in the morning, both men were up and at 'em. 

Rios reminded Salem the landing would be in Tirana. A much smaller airport and a shorter wait time. Still decently large, however. Salem got off the plane and looked around. Then came the time to board.

A 4-hour flight and they were in Albania. 75-degree weather greeted them as they both took a deep breath and took it all in. They found their driver, holding up a white sign with the names Salem and Rios on it. 

"Hello, Mr. Salem and Mr. Rios. I trust your flights were comfortable?" 

"About as much as they could be. Now, where's our contact?" Salem asked, pre-mission jitters kicking in. 

"Not to worry. Your contact is downtown," the driver said in perfect English. 

"Thank you...?" Rios asked. 

"Agim." 

"Thanks, Agim," Salem said. 

"My pleasure, sir." 

Half an hour passed from busy traffic and the duo were outside a large hotel building. Taking out a few of their bags, Rios grinned widely. Finally, a nice place to stay. It already beat any job he'd ever been on. 

That was when they met their contact. He personally escorted them in and nodded to the driver. He brought them inside for a drink. No trip was complete without one. Less than a minute later, they sat down, deep in conversation. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. As always, I really appreciate feedback! If anyone has any ideas, I'm open.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry that this was so short. More will be up soon! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it!


End file.
